Love Me, Hate Me
by Vampander
Summary: Draco and Hermione are back for their sixth and seventh years of Hogwarts. Between these two years, they have this love me, hate me relationship going on? Which one will prevail in the end?
1. Prologue

Prologue:

It's been confirmed that Voldemort is really back since the great battle at the end of Harry's fifth year. Going into the sixth and seventh year, there will be many challenges to face for him. However, this fanfic focuses on Hermione Granger and Draco Malfoy instead of Harry Potter. The prefects for Hogwarts are still the same, meaning that Ron, Hermione, and Draco are still prefects going into their sixth year and seventh year. We do not know who Head Boy and Head Girl is until the seventh year, and Harry still has a chance of becoming one since you don't have to be a prefect to become Head Boy. As we all know, the Malfoys, among other strict purebloods, are Deatheaters and their Deatheater mark has been branded onto their arms.

Characters:

Hermione Granger

Draco Malfoy

Harry Potter

Ron Weasley

Ginny Weasley

Pansy Parkinson

Lucius Malfoy

Voldemort

and others...


	2. Back to School

Chapter One: **Back to School**

Hermione arrived at the train station with just three minutes to spare. Unfortunately, she saw Draco as she was boarding the train. "Hey Mudblood. Why are you in a hurry? We weren't going to leave without Gryffindor's prefect, right boys? What a joke. Having a mudblood for a prefect?"

"Why don't you just shut up ferret? What's it to you that I'm late? Why would I even care what a snobby little thing like you think about me? I know I'm better, and no one is going to tell me otherwise."

"Watch that little mouth of yours Mudblood, you'll get what you deserve one day."

"And so will you." Hermione left in a huff while carrying her luggage behind her. Draco was taking in Hermione's new look. She no longer had her plain brown curly hair. She had it straightened over the summer and she got some dark blonde highlights into her hair too. To sum it up, her hair glowed now. Draco couldn't help but admire it. She sure has changed a lot over the summer. Even her curves were starting to kick in and shape her body more.

When Hermione saw Ron, Harry, Ginny, Luna, and Neville in their cart, she quickly gave everyone a hug. Now Harry's own personal army of friends was complete. She sat next to Harry. "I'm so sorry that I'm late. My parents were running late because our car wouldn't start and I couldn't fly over here, so yeah. Sorry." Everyone was staring at her hair. "What?"

"Bloody hell Hermione. What happened to your hair? Are you trying to be like that Malfoy?"

"What are you talking about? I know it's a little straighter, a little blonder, but it's nothing like Malfoy's!"

Ginny smiled, "I love it Hermione. Did you get it permed or did you just straighten it?"

"I actually got it permed. I still have to straighten my hair every morning though to keep it this straight. You're so lucky that you have straight hair Ginny." Ginny smiled.

Ron rolled his eyes. "Can we stop talking about HAIR now? It's so stupid."

"Then why don't you just shave your head Ronald?"

"What's gotten into you Hermione? Why are you all fired up this morning?"

"It's that stupid ferret. I ran into him when I boarded the train and he kept on calling me Mudblood like always. I hate it how he's a prefect and Harry isn't. No offense Ron."

"None taken. I was as surprised as anyone when I got that letter. I think Harry deserve to be prefect more."

Harry said for the hundredth time, "It's okay Ron. I'm happy that you made prefect. I have enough on my mind anyways. With Voldemort back, we need to find a way to defeat him. I have to concentrate on that instead of watching over the smaller students."

"I guess. But Harry, what's going to happen? Sirius isn't here to help you anymore."

"I know Ron, I know. I don't know what I'm going to do. My parents are gone, and Sirius is gone too. I hope that Dumbledore will tell me what to do next."

Luna and Neville was just sitting there listening in on everyone's conversations. They were there at the battle a couple of months ago and they experienced first hand what it was like fighting against the Dark Arts. They were really grateful for Harry teaching them Defense Against the Dark Arts when Umbridge was controlling the school and being ridiculous. They can both relate to what it feels like to have a person so close to them die because both of them have experienced it.

The announcements called out, "Calling all prefects. Calling all prefects. Please come to the prefects' cart in the next minute. Calling all prefects, come to the prefects' cart." Ron and Hermione excused themselves as they walked towards the prefects' cart. They saw Draco on the way, and of course, he just sneered at them as he pushed past them.

When they arrived at the cart, their Headmistress, Professor McGonagall, was waiting for them. "This is a new year at Hogwarts and there are many students coming this year as many magically talented students have been discovered after the reappearance of You Know Who."

Hermione interrupted with, "Professor McGonagall, I think it would be appropriate to call him by his name, Voldemort. We shouldn't be afraid of him. We will win the fight against Voldemort, I'm sure of it."

Draco was thinking, "How dare that Mudblood call the Dark Lord by his name?! This is a disgrace."

"Ms. Granger, we do not force anyone to do anything they do not want to. But, as I was saying," she paused, "Voldemort has returned. It is you as prefects to make sure that all the students in your House are safe and none are wondering out of their common rooms after hours. We have a higher than average number of students enrolling this year and I want to make sure that each and every one of them is safe. It is your job to take care of the students in your House. You must escort all the younger students to their appropriate dormitories after the Welcoming Feast and give them the password, which will be handed to you on a slip of paper now." As everyone read the password, they quickly burned the paper so that the people of the other Houses cannot read their password. "Okay, you may leave now. Be prepare to lead the other students back to Hogwarts when we get off the train." Everyone nodded a yes and headed out of the cart. Professor McGonagall caught Ron and Hermione and told them, "Ms. Granger, Mr. Weasley, tell Mr. Potter to come to Professor Dumbledore's office after the Welcoming Feast."

Hermione answered, "Yes Professor." She quickly left to go back to Harry's cart. She whispered to Harry's ear, "Professor McGonagall told me to tell you to go to Dumbledore's office after the Feast." Harry gave her a quick nod.

After the Sorting Hat Ceremony, and before the Feast, Dumbledore gave everyone the usual announcements. "Welcome to the Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry. I am very happy to see many new, and old, faces. First off, I want to remind everyone that you cannot use magic freely, unless you are in class, or unless you are of age. The Forbidden Forest is still forbidden unless for lessons of Care of Magical Creatures. Please remember that you must not be out of your common rooms and dormitories after hours or there will be severe punishments. And last but not least, your Defense Against of the Dark Arts teacher who will replace Professor Umbridge is Professor Snape." Hermione, Ron, and Harry's mouths fell open. Snape? Defense Against the Dark Arts teacher? "And now, let the Feast begin."

Ron said, "Bloody hell, Snape as our Dark Arts teacher. It will be one hell of a year. I don't know how I will pass that class now. I didn't pass Potions with him around and I surely won't be able to pass Dark Arts now."

Hermione rolled her eyes. "Oh Ron, just study harder! You are always too lazy, always off eating something instead of studying. If it wasn't for your brothers last year, I don't know how you would've passed the OWL exams."

He grinned. "Well I'm glad I have the best brothers in the world then. Too bad they're not here this year."

"Yeah, too bad," said Hermione sarcastically.

As the Feast ended, and Harry had to go to Dumbledore's office, Ron and Hermione and the other prefects gathered everyone in their House up to go back to their dormitories. Hermione and Draco arrived at the Great Hall gates at the same time and neither would budge to let the other House pass. "Move you filthy Mudblood. You should be adoring the ground I walk on instead of fighting with me over the exit. You don't deserve to be first."

"And why should I be adoring your filthy grounds? If I don't deserve to be first then why am I always on top of the class and surpassing you? Ferret, don't think you can get away with anything this year. I may have been helping Harry last year, but this year, I'm going to be looking at every Slytherin, getting every chance I get to dock points away."

"We'll see Mudblood, we'll see who wins the House Cup this year." What has gotten into her? Why has she become so stubborn? It's sort of attractive, but Malfoy dismissed it out of his head immediately. She pushed past him and the Gryffindor students flooded out of the Great Hall while the Slytherin ones had to wait for them to pass. "This isn't over Granger, you'll pay."

When Harry came back from the meeting with Dumbledore, Hermione and Ron quickly pulled him into a corner and began badgering him with questions. "What did Dumbledore say to you?" "Does he want you to raise an army to fight Voldemort?" "Is Voldemort going to attack soon?"

Harry began shaking his head and putting his hands over his ears. "Guys! Listen to me. Dumbledore didn't say anything about Voldemort. He just asked if I recovered from the battle and if I was ready to prepare for more mind and memory lessons. He also told me that I was now captain of our Quidditch team!"

Hermione screamed. "Harry! I knew you could do it. Congrats! I can't wait to see you in your first game. It's going to be so exciting, isn't it Ron?"

Ron shrugged his shoulders. "Not really...? It's just a match Hermione. You don't even like Quidditch."

"Yeah..but! Harry is going to play. I will have to root for him. It's what friends do, Ron, okay?"

"Why don't you root for the both of us then? I'm on the team too you know."

"Yeah, but you're not seeker nor are you captain."

Ron sighed and shook his head. "Women, you can never get them."

Hermione looked at the time, it was time for prefect duties already. She quickly gave a hug to Harry before rushing out the door with Ron. She looked back and said, "Welcome back to school Harry, it's great to be together again."

Harry smiled. "It's glad to be back. I love having you guys around."


	3. Prefect Duties

Chapter Two: **Prefect Duties**

Hermione and Ron were the second to last to arrive at the daily prefect meetings. Draco, of course, was the last to arrive. Professor McGonagall sighed. "Glad of you to join us Mr. Malfoy. Next time, I hope you will be on time, or I will have to dock points from your House and also revoke some of your privileges too." She paused so Draco can drill that into his head. "Okay, today is the first meeting of the school year. Please give a round of applause to the fifth year prefects as they have surpassed all other students and have a great responsibility thrust upon them." Everyone gave a light applause. "On to other matters now. As we do every year, we draw papers out of a hat to select the prefect partners. If the partners belong to the same House, another partner will be selected for them. This will create a deeper bond between the two Houses. These two people will make rounds together and help each other out if they are in trouble. If one cannot make the rounds, unfortunately, you will have to do it alone."

Ron sighed. He actually thought that McGonagall will bend the rules this year and he might get a chance to make rounds with Hermione. He wasn't close friends with anyone here and certainly didn't want to end up with anyone in Slytherin. McGonagall pulled out the first name. "Hermione Granger of Gryffindor. You will be paired with..." She pulled out another slip from the hat. "...Draco Malfoy of Slytherin." Hermione let out a groan. Of all the people in the room, why did she have to end up with HIM? She didn't want to make rounds with him for a whole year. Malfoy was thinking the same thing. How could he face her for a YEAR of rounds? How could McGonagall pair him up with such a lowly creature? She must be kidding. They were both engrossed in their thoughts and McGonagall had to tap on the wood several times to get their attention to see where they were going to make rounds.

For the rest of the night while making rounds, they tried to outwalk each other to stay in front. They did not get along at all. Fortunately for them, they didn't see anyone wandering around when they shouldn't so they didn't actually have to work together. Both were very tired by the time they went back to their dormitories. Their legs were sore from walking so fast for a long period of time. Ron tried to wake Hermione up to ask her how her rounds were, but she pushed him away, she needed her sleep.

He tried talking to her the next morning at breakfast, but she dismissed him. "Ron! When did you start becoming so annoying? It was just rounds. Nothing happened. What could possibly happen? I am here safe and sound, aren't I?" Ron gave a dejected nod. What has gotten into Hermione these days?

Harry said, "Hermione, just ignore it. It's probably because Ron hasn't had a girlfriend for so long and he wants to get with you." He laughed hysterically as Ron shot him deathly stares. It was supposed to be a secret! How could Harry do that to him?

Hermione smiled. "Harry! Stop joking around, we have Defense Against the Dark Arts first today." Ron and Harry groaned. They dreaded going to that class now that Snape was the professor and they certainly didn't look forward to it being the first class of the day.

When they got into class, they saw that Malfoy was talking about something serious with Snape. When they saw that other students were filing into class, they quickly dismissed their conversation until later. Everyone was curious about what they were saying, but put it aside when class started.

Snape has finally gotten his dream job. He has always wanted to teach Defense Against the Dark Arts. He didn't want to teach these students per se, but he wanted to teach people what he knew. As rumors have been going around, he WAS a Deatheater. There's no denying that, but people have to get that he isn't one now. But whatever, he isn't going to explain himself to anyone that isn't going to listen. So what if people mistake him for a Deatheater, he doesn't care. He's going to teach the students how to defend themselves so they can fight when they are in the presence of the Dark Lord, not that any of them will actually stand a chance.

He started the school year by giving them a paper to write. It was on forbidden curses and why they cannot be used. Everyone must hand in their paper by the end of two weeks to pass the term. Whoever has the most curses, their House will be awarded fifty points. Everyone in Gryffindor was looking at Hermione to win those fifty points for them. She groaned. Why was everyone always looking at her to do everything? Why can't they try on this paper too? She was pretty sure she would get the fifty points, but can't they at least try to do this on their own? She swore that she will not help ANYone on this paper, no matter how much they begged, especially not Ron.

When she got a study, she began cracking open the books at the library to start her paper. Everyone else was just fooling around. She saw Draco and his nitwit friends fooling around on the couches. She ignored them and began taking notes for her paper. Draco spied Hermione working on something in the corner and went over to her. He placed his head, with his layered, tousled, beach blonde hair, next to hers and whisper into her air, "What are you doing Mudblood? Starting your paper already?"

Hermione quickly turned around, whipping her hair into Malfoy's face and eyes by accident. She smirked. "Sorry ferret, I didn't see you there. Maybe that will teach you not to sneak up on me anymore. And why do you care?"

He scowled and left to go back to his friends. "I'll get you back for everything you've done Mudblood, that's a promise."

Hermione was ahead of Malfoy when they were doing their daily rounds together. He was drilling holes into the back of her head with his eyes, which were still a little pink from the incident at the library. He was going to get her back tonight. He saw a something was draped above her head and he put a spell for it to drop down. However, when it was an inch away from reaching her, Hermione saw her cat, Crookshanks. "Crookshanks! Where have you been? I've been looking all over for you." She scooped the cat into her hands and began stroking its soft fur.

"Damn that stupid cat." How could he let that stupid thing get into his way? He put the drapes back where they belong. He walked behind her again. He spied a flowerpot on the side while they were walking down the stairs. Hermione was too busy paying attention to Crookshanks to pay attention to Malfoy, so when he sent the flowerpot towards her, she didn't see it and couldn't get away in time. Her upper body jerked forward when the flowerpot hit her back and Crookshanks jumped out of her hands and onto the railings. When she reached over to grab him off the railings, she slipped and she sailed over the railings. She would've fell to the ground if she didn't grab onto the stairs in time.

Malfoy's eyeballs almost popped out of his sockets. What just happened? WHAT JUST HAPPENED?! This wasn't suppose to happen. He quickly ran over to where Hermione was hanging on. "Can you climb higher onto the railing? I can't help you if you're all the way on the floor."

"Shut up Malfoy! This is your fault! Help me up!" Her hands were getting sore now and they couldn't hang on any longer. She tried to hang onto the wooden bars connecting the railing and the floor, but they were of no help either. She could feel her hand slipping and she was about to fall again. Draco wrapped his hands around hers, but that made it worse. He was gripping too hard and her hands were starting to hurt even more. She couldn't hold on anymore and she fell towards the ground.

Malfoy sighed. Why did his life suck so much? He jumped over the railing after her, hoping that the staircases would move any moment now and break Hermione's fall. Luckily, for them, the staircases moved as if on cue and Hermione landed on her back on the top of a staircase. However, unfortunately for Hermione, Draco landed on top of her, sqiushing her onto the floor. "MALFOY! You freaking ferret! Got off of me right now!" She pushed him off of her onto the floor and he rolled down the stairs as Hermione laughed at what she had done. "That's what you get for throwing the flowerpot at me!" She left Malfoy at the bottom of the stairs and went to the nurse to see if she broke anything.

The next morning, when she saw Malfoy again, he called out, "Hey Mudblood, how did you sleep last night? Your back give you any problems?" He smirked towards his friends.

"At least I'm not the one stupid enough to jump down four flights of stairs and roll down on the floor to the bottom." Malfoy scowled at her.

Harry was furious. "What did you do to her Malfoy!" He grabbed him by the collar. "Tell me now!"

Snape just happened to walk past them in the hallway and saw what Harry was doing to Malfoy. "Potter! Let go of him. I'm docking ten points from Gryffindor due to your ruthless behavior."

Malfoy smirked again. "Yeah, Potter. I'm docking another ten points from Gryffindor."

Hermione was furious. How could he do that to Harry?! In a flash of anger, she stomped with all her strength onto Draco's foot. He howled in pain. His friends grabbed her by her arms to hold her back so Malfoy can get his revenge. Harry and Ron pushed them away. "No one touches Hermione."

Hermione scowled. "Don't touch me again you nitwits. And I'M docking twenty points from Slytherin due to your friends' ruthless behaviors, Malfoy. You better watch it, I'm a prefect too." She paused before whispering into his ear again. "I hate you Malfoy."  
He smirked and sarcastically said, "What a surprise."

Hermione tried to avoid Draco as much as possible. They didn't talk to each other during their rounds and they certainly didn't interact while they were in school. Hermione thought of getting revenge on Malfoy, but it just wasn't like her. And what if they ended up falling over the railings again? It will hurt so much to have her back cracked again. For the first time that school year, they had a person wandering out of their dormitories after hours. It was a first year Slytherin. He was going to the bathroom, but he had gotten lost and went out the door instead. He didn't have his glasses on so he couldn't tell where he was going. He was very scared and he tried to find someone to help him, but there was no one there.

Hermione said, "What are you doing out here? Do you know it's after hours? You're suppose to be sleeping in your bed by now."

The little kid whimpered. "I'm sorry. I got lost and I can't see without my glasses."

"You know that I have to report you to the head of your House, Professor Snape?"

"What? Professor Snape?! Noo. Pleaseee.... Please don't." The boy started to whimper again. "Please don't send me to him. I'm scared of him. He..he...he's very scary."

Hermione got down on her knees to get on eye level with the boy. "I know he's scary, but I'm sorry. Rules are rules. Next time when you have to go to the bathroom, put on your glasses, okay? Or find this guy," points to Draco, "he'll help you, okay? I'm really sorry about this time. " She whispered into his ear, "I don't like Professor Snape, but rules are rules okay? I'll give you a lollipop. When you're finished eating it, we have to go to Professor Snape's office, okay?" He nodded. She handed him a lollipop and he began eating it.

Draco was amazed at her. She was pretty good with children. If it was him, he would've just whisked the little boy towards Snape's office and just leave him there. And where did that lollipop even come from? How did she know that he was missing his glasses? Draco contradicted himself in his thoughts. "Wait, what am I doing? Why am I praising her? So what if she is good with children, it doesn't mean anything. What she is good at shouldn't mean a thing to me."

When the little boy was done with his lollipop, Hermione held his hand while they went to Snape's office. By the way they were acting, it seems like the little boy was only five years old, while in reality, he was already eleven. Hermione knocked on Snape's doors. "Come in."

When he saw that it was Hermione and Draco, he frowned. "Ms. Granger. Mr. Malfoy. To what do I owe this honor of having two prefects in my office at this hour?"

Hermione responded, "Professor, a first year in your House was wandering the halls after hours. He forgot to put on his glasses and he got lost."

"I see." He considered it for a moment. "Out. I don't have time to deal with this today. I would assume that you two would take the responsibility of bringing this first year back to his dormitories? Yes?"

Both of the prefects answered, "Yes, Professor."

Hermione and the little boy was smiling happily when they left Snape's office. "Aren't you a lucky boy. You got out of trouble today, but make sure you don't get in trouble again. You might not be as lucky next time." The boy nodded and they escorted him back to the Slytherin dormitories. She got down to eye level with the little boy again. "Go back to your bed and sleep okay? Remember to put on your glasses next time. And what's your name little kid?"

He squeaked, "Cullen."

She tossed his hair and gave him a pat. "Be good now Cullen, okay? And remember, just because you're a Slytherin, it doesn't mean you have to act like one." She stared directly at Malfoy as she was saying this. He nodded as he went back to his dormitories.

Draco asked, "What was that all about? Don't act like a Slytherin?"

Hermione scoffed. "I think you know what I mean. It means don't act like you, Malfoy."


	4. Obeying Orders

Chapter Three: **Obeying Orders**

Pansy slid into the seat next to Malfoy and wrapped her arm around his. "Drakieee! I haven't seen you in so long. I only get a chance to see you when I'm in class, but even then we don't sit next to each other. And we never hang out anymore. I don't see you at night either because of prefect duties." She gave him what was suppose to be a seductive pout.

He pushed her arm away. "Not now Pansy. I'm not in the mood for your little jokes today."

"What has gotten into you Malfoy? You're not who you are anymore. You don't joke around and make fun of people anymore. You're always pissed off about something and you don't tell us anything."

"Don't talk to me in that tone. You don't mean a thing to me. Get out of my sight right now, I don't want to deal with you today."

"I won't. And I'LL tell you why you are so pissed off. You're pissed off because you have to pair up with that Mudblood Granger don't you? It's because of that, isn't it?"

When Pansy said the words Mudblood Granger, it seemed like a sword was stabbed into his heart and it woke him up. She was a mudblood, why would he care if she called him a Slytherin or not? He WAS a Slytherin and he was proud of that. "It is. And I'm over it. I'll be with you the next time we go to Hogsmeade." Pansy quickly smiled and gave him a light peck on the cheek before returning back to her friends. It has always been like this. They weren't boyfriend and girlfriend, but they flirted with each other, but mostly Pansy did the flirting. Malfoy didn't really care. He didn't have a girlfriend, Pansy can do whatever she wants, and it's not like she's ugly or anything.

Malfoy looked over to the Gryffindor table and spotted Hermione talking to Harry and Ron, as always. He was not going to let her affect him anymore. He needed to return back to his old life where he was in charge of the school. He can't let that thing run his life anymore.

Over in the Gryffindor table, Hermione and Ron was asking Harry about his lessons with Snape and Dumbledore. They were tiring him immensely and not once has he gotten a good night's sleep that week. "Ugh, can you guys stop asking me questions? I am so tired. Those lessons are draining all my energy. I can't keep up with Snape. He pushes me to the edge every single time. Dumbledore is a little more lenient, but it still tires me out. Just let me sleep for a few more moments, okay?"

Ron and Hermione exchanged a worried look. "Harry, are you sure you can keep doing this? Maybe you should ask Dumbledore to give you a day or two off. You seem really tired and out of it. If you keep on doing this, when you meet Voldemort again, you won't have the strength to fight him."

"I'm okay, really. You guys don't have to worry about me. I'm just tired out. I'll be okay if I get some rest. I think this is when I get to say that I'm glad I'm not a prefect." Hermione laughed. Yes, she was glad too. She didn't want to see Harry overstress himself.

All the professors were tired of Harry being half-asleep in their classes all the time. However, they knew that they couldn't do anything about it. Harry was having lessons and that is bound to tire anyone out. Hermione urged Harry to ask for a day or two off, but Harry knew that it wasn't going to go through. Snape wasn't going to let him off that easily. He's always saying that with Voldemort, there is no mercy and Voldemort will not be giving him breaks in the middle of torturing him.

When Hermione and Draco were making the rounds that night, Draco's mark suddenly came alive and began burning his skin. If he didn't show up in front of the Dark Lord immediately, it will not stop hurting. "I have to go to the nurse." He ran towards the nurse's office, leaving Hermione to think what the hell just happened.  
Hermione was baffled. "Where is he going? I didn't see any sign wrong with him before. Why does he need to go to the nurse's office? Is he faking sick so he can get out of his duties today?" She sighed. Guess she'll have to make her rounds alone tonight.

Draco was the last to arrive at the Deatheaters' meeting. Voldemort asked, "What took you so long, my boy?"

"Forgive me, my Lord. I was in school doing my prefect duties when you called. I tried to get out as fast and as unnoticable as possible. Forgive me for my slowness."

Voldemort nodded, acknowledging him, but neither forgiving him or punishing him. Voldemort began speaking very slowly, emphasizing each and every word. "I am getting stronger and stronger every day. There will be one day where I can attack the walls of Hogwarts and take every one of them filthy Mudbloods out. You guys will help me, especially you, Draco Malfoy, my son."

Draco got down onto his knees. "Yes, My Lord. I will assist you in any way I can." Lucius smirked behind his mask. His boy was finally get the full attention of the Dark Lord, he will have a great future ahead of him. Draco bowed his head before Voldemort.

Voldemort used his wand to lift Draco's head up. "Draco Malfoy. Son of Lucius Malfoy. While your father has been on the edge with his loyalty, he has saved himself this time by sending his son to me. That is, you." He smelled Draco. "You reek of Mudblood smell. I do not approve." Lucius glared at his son. Why has he been associating with filthy Mudbloods in school?

Draco said, "I am sorry to filthy your wand with this horrendous smell. I cannot help it. McGonagall has paired me up to do duties with that filthy Mudblood Granger."

"Ahh, yes. Ms. Granger. Harry Potter's best friend. Very well. Stand up, I have an assignment for you."

Draco did as he was told. "My Lord, what can I do for you?"

"I have prepared thousands of rats that have been trained to walk through the halls of Hogwarts to feed me information. Since you are the only one that can walk in and out freely, you have the job of freeing these rats into the school."

"My Lord, may I boldly ask why do you need rats to help you? Can you not move in and out freely as well?"

"Ah, my son, you have overestimated my powers. I am powerful, yes, but I have plenty of time left before reaching to what I once was before. These rats will be my eyes of the school. Seeing things that you cannot see." Draco simply nodded. "But you must remember, never let a rat bite you, for they are far more poisonous than you can imagined. Their only enemies are cats, their natural enemies, and rat poison."

"Rat poison, My Lord?"

"Ah, yes, rat poison. Certainly not muggle rat poison. They have no effect whatsoever on our specialized rats. This special kind of rat poison is very toxic and can be deadly when breathed in at large amounts. It is made up of the ten most deadly chemicals and although the chemicals will stay in the air for only five seconds, it will wipe out any rat in its way. The chemicals are very hard to obtain and combine together. It takes five days to make and by the time those so called professors find out about these rats, it will be too late. For while the rats are there to feed me information, they can bite as many Mudbloods as they please. Also, within five days, they would have explored every nook and cranny of Hogwarts and I will find a way to get inside."

"And what if one was to be bitten by the rats, My Lord?"

"Death will surely be upon them. However, rats can only poison a magically talented witch or wizard through another opening in their body. Let's just hope that those Mudbloods will not be so lucky." All the Deatheaters bowed down in their Dark Lord's master plan.

Malfoy has been gone for a few days since he has left his duties mysteriously. Hermione hasn't seen him on his duties for a while, not that she was worried or anything. That night, Malfoy came back and was present for his prefect duties. Hermione wanted to ask him why he had disappeared for so many days, but she didn't want to seem caring towards him. She never bothered to ask and they were back to normal. They didn't talk while they were on duty and they kept within a feet of each other.

While they were making their rounds around the school, they bumped into Pansy and her partner. She immediately became protective of Draco when she saw that he was with Hermione. She hooked arms with him and began walking with him instead of her partner. Hermione and Pansy's partner trailed behind them as the other two walked ahead looking like a couple. Ugh, Hermione was so agitated. Pansy shouldn't be with them. She couldn't be making rounds with someone in the same group, it's against the rules!

When Draco and Pansy went back to their dormitories, they went their seperate ways. Malfoy had let Pansy show him off in front of Hermione like that to show her that Hermione was not the only woman in his life. He was lusted after by many younger Slytherins because of his bad boy reputation, his good looks, and his layered, tousled, beach blonde hair.

After he was sure that everyone was sleeping soundly in their dormitories, he sneaked out through their common room. He had divided the rats into five batches, with the fifth batch the biggest. He will release them throughout the five days, hoping that they won't actually bite anyone during those five days.


	5. In The Dark

Chapter Four: **In The Dark**

It's been three days since Malfoy has released his first batch of rats. He has not seen the hundreds of rats he's released anywhere in the Hogwarts castle. When he was making rounds with Hermione, they saw their first rat. Hermione gasped and took a huge step back, away from the rat. She was deathly afraid of rats. When taking the step backwards, she accidentally bumped into Malfoy and they both would've stumbled to the ground if he hadn't grabbed her shoulders/arms to settle themselves. She quickly moved away from him, muttering a lame thank you as they moved quickly into the next hallway.

Malfoy smirked. "What was that Mudblood? Our own Granger afraid of a measley rat?"

Hermione retorted, "Shut up ferret! Only a lowly, filthy creature such as yourself can associate peacefully with another lowly, filthy creature like a rat."

"Watch your mouth Mudblood, you're the lowly, filthy creature here."

Hermione started walking ahead, but quickly jumped behind Malfoy again when she saw another rat scurry past her. She quickly excused herself again. What was wrong with her? Why does she keep on using Malfoy to shield her from the rats? They were just rats. They shouldn't scare her. The next time she sees another one, she will bravely walk past it as if nothing has happened. Gradually, Hermione and Malfoy began walking side by side. They saw Crookshanks again, but there was something hanging from his mouth. When he got closer, Hermione saw that it was a giant dead rat. She gasped and grabbed Malfoy's hand by accident. They were holding hands in the middle of the hallway for a second, before they finally realized what had happened. Hermione quickly let go of his hand and went to take that filthy thing away from Crookshank's mouth. She quickly went inside a bathroom to rinse out his mouth.

Malfoy let out a sigh of relief. Crookshanks was a cat, the rat's natural enemy, so the poisonous rat shouldn't have any effect on it. He asked, "Is Crookshanks...alright?"

She glared at him. "What's it to you if he's alright or not? It was just a rat. You associate with them. They are your friends. I'm taking him back to my dorms. Wait for me if you like, but I rather you didn't."

Malfoy shook his head. Why does he even bother to TRY being nice to her? They have never gotten along and they never will.

When she got back to her dormitories, she saw that Harry was just coming back from his lessons. "Harry, are you okay?"

He nodded. "I'm fine Hermione. Just tired. I need to get some sleep, but I'm behind in all my classes. I can't keep doing this."

She gave him a pat on the shoulders. "Harry, you'll get through it. Just wait. You'll have your break soon enough. Christmas vacation will come sooner than you think."

"I hope so too."

Just before Harry went up the stairs, Hermione caught his arm. "Has Dumbledore or Snape told you anything about Voldemort?"

He shook his head. "Nope. We don't usually talk to each other unless we have to. Snape always tells me to concentrate more."

She nodded an understanding. "Maybe, this is nothing, but maybe this is something. If you have time, just mention to Dumbledore that there has been a lot of rats around lately. Crookshanks even caught one today and brought it to me."

Harry laughed. "You must've been scared to death."

"Was I ever! It was the worst thing ever. It was all bloody and hanging from Crookshanks mouth. Ugh."

Harry gave her a tired smiled. "I'll mention it to him tomorrow. I'm sure it's just nothing, though. Maybe the weather is changing and the rats are coming in for the warmth."

"Maybe."

Two days after she told Harry about the rats, she asked him, "Did Dumbledore say anything about the rats?"  
He shook his head. "Nope. He just told me to stop worrying about it. It's just rats. He might get some rat poison to take them out if they get to be too much."

"Ohh. Well it's a good thing it was nothing. Imagine what I was like when I saw Crookshanks with a dead mouse in his mouth!" Hermione shuddered at the thought of it.  
Ron was confused. "What are you guys talking about? Dead rats? Crookshanks? Dumbledore?" Ron was very sensitive on the subject of rats ever since Scabbers turned out to be Peter Pettigrew, the friend that went over to Voldemort's side and betrayed Harry's parents.

Hermione said, "Don't be alarmed Ron, but there have been an extremely large amount of rats running around Hogwarts these days. I just mentioned it to Harry a couple of nights ago so he can talk it over with Dumbledore to see if anything's going on."

Neville interrupted with, "So, is there anything going on? I don't like rats. They scare me."

Hermione said, "According to Harry, there's nothing going on. And rats scare me too Neville."

Luna turned her face sideways. "Why? Rats may not be the most beautiful creature, but they can be cuddly sometimes. And plus, they can be really useful. They are still animals after all. What is the Headmaster planning to do with the rats?"

Harry shrugged. "Poison them so they can die, I guess? Sorry Luna, but I don't feel a sympathy for them. Ever since Scabbers, rats haven't been my favorite animals in the world."

Luna was curious. "So what IS your favorite animal?"

"I'm not sure. I have a couple. I would say a big black dog because of Sirius. But also a stag because it was mine and my father's Patronus."

"That's nice." Luna sometimes came off as being very spacious and slow, but she was just the opposite. Even though she spoke with a sweet, slow voice, she was a very smart girl. She thinks of things no one ever dares to think of and she doesn't care to voice her opinion. She is different from everyone else, but she doesn't care to show her individuality. She likes being different, and that's what the group loves about her.

Neville asked, "Soo...? The rats are going to be gone?" Everyone laughed and nodded.

Malfoy has just released his last batch of rats last night. He hasn't seen any since a couple of days ago when he was making rounds with Hermione. When the prefects were gathered for their daily meeting, Professor McGonagall reminded them, "As a reminder, as I've said yesterday, you guys will be getting off earlier tonight. We will be killing off the rats that have been infesting Hogwarts this past week." Everyone nodded in relief that they get off their duties earlier today.

Hermione tried not to walk side by side with Malfoy, but as they gradually got into the duties, it was inevitable. When she walked ahead, she would unconsciously walk slower so she can keep in pace with Malfoy. It was annoying. They were so engrossed in their own thoughts that they didn't notice it was way past their time to get off duties. The rat poison was coming in any moment, and of course, it was deadly, as Voldemort have said.

Malfoy heard Filch coming their way and freaked. It was time for the rat poison. In a panic, he pushed Hermione towards the corner of a wall. They were trapped in an enclosed space with three walls surrounding them since the space was behind a column. They were pushed into the dark so Filch will not see that there are still students out. And also, he didn't want either of them to get in the way of the rat poison. He knew what was wrong with it, but Hermione didn't. He didn't have to look to know that Filch was wearing a protective air-tight mask around his face so he doesn't die because of the poison.

Hermione was about to ask what the hell was going on when Malfoy put his hand over her mouth to shut her up. He put a finger over his lips to signal for her to be quiet. When he heard Filch coming closer, he wrapped his dark green robes around Hermione and pushed her closer to him so she cannot smell any of the fumes from the poison. Malfoy held his breath for as long as he could and pushed the two of them closer to the wall. He could feel Hermione's heart beating against his.

Hermione was in shock. What was happening? Why was that ferret holding her so close to him? Why was her heart beating so fast? After a minute or so, Malfoy finally let go of her. "Are you okay Granger?" What did he just call her? Granger? That was a first.

She nodded. "I'm fine. What just happened? Why were you holding me?"

He scoffed. "You blame me for holding you while the rat poison was being released by Filch. I'm glad I saved your life then."

"Well I'm sorry I forgot what time it was. Ugh. Don't think I'll feel any less hatred for you just because you saved me." Hermione walked back into the hallway, away from Malfoy and took a breath. She began feeling lightheaded and in a few seconds, her knees gave away and she began falling towards the ground. Luckily, Malfoy caught her in his arms.

What was happening? Why did Hermione faint? Wasn't the gas only suppose to last for five seconds? Why didn't he faint? Malfoy quickly put his other hand on the back of her knees and lifted her up. He carried her all the way to the nurse. He muttered to himself, "Why am I doing this? Why am I bringing her to the nurse so she can get better and not just let her die on the floor? Why do I want to save her? We both clearly don't have any positive feelings towards each other."

When Madam Pomfrey saw Malfoy carrying Hermione in his hands into the hospital wing, she quickly got a bed ready for her. Malfoy laid Hermione gently onto the white sheets. She questioned Malfoy, "What happened Mr. Malfoy?"

He shrugged. "I don't know. We forgot we had to leave early for the rat poisonning and we had to hid in a corner when the fumes were being released. We came back out a minute after the fumes were gone and she fainted. I was wondering myself what happened since I didn't faint like she did."

"I see." She looked at Hermione. "Well thank you for bringing Ms. Granger here, you can go back to your dormitories now." Malfoy left without another word.


	6. Saving Him

Chapter Five: **Saving Him**

As soon as Malfoy got back to his dormitories, his Dark Mark began burning and he had to Apparate to Voldemort's side. He bowed down in respect for the Dark Lord as the others began arriving too. He saw that his parents were the last ones to arrive. Voldemort spoke, "Draco Malfoy."

Draco got down on his knees before his Dark Lord. "Yes, My Lord?"

"You have failed me."

"Forgive me for my grave mistakes, My Lord."

"Some mistakes can not be forgiven." Draco bowed down his head and closed his eyes. When he first joined the Deatheaters, he knew that one day he will have to give up his life. He was not afraid to die today, if that's what it takes.

Voldemort raised his wand, preparing to cast the Cruciatus curse. A thin slit of light erupted from his wand and was headed towards Draco. Just as the curse was about to hit him, Narcissa Malfoy threw himself in front of Draco, taking in the curse instead of Draco. She began writhering in pain as the curse hit her. The pain was excruciating as it felt like a thousand knives were being stabbed into her at the same time from everywhere within her body.

Lucius immediately ran towards Narcissa and fell down to his knees, with his cloak spanning out behind him, when his wife was hit with the curse. "Please, My Lord! Please! Please spare my wife!"

Voldemort held onto the curse for a second more before releasing Narcissa of her pain. "What do you have to say for yourself Narcissa?"

Narcissa coughed and her face was paler than usual. "I'm sorry, My Lord. I...I...I was just trying to protect my son, Draco. Please. Please, just give him a moment to explain. I'm sure there's a good explaination for this." She looked over to Draco. "Draco, tell him!" She placed a protective arm around Draco as Lucius did the same to Narcissa

Draco asked, "My Lord, may I speak?"

Voldemort looked over to his pitiful parents. Just like the Potters, they were trying to protect their only son. Despicable. Knowing that they have always been loyal to him and always obeyed his biddings, he finally nodded his head. Draco gave a tiny sigh of relief. "Thank you, My Lord." He paused to gather his thoughts.

Voldemort began asking him instead. "Why did you seperate the rats into five batches?"

"It was too risky to release them all at once. They might become suspicious if all of a sudden, rats were appearing everywhere. If I seperated them, the earlier rats can find hiding places before another batch comes."

Voldemort nodded his head, as if he was agreeing to Draco's plans. "Then, why have your 'master' plan failed?"

"I don't know My Lord. But I think they might have found out about our plans sooner than you expected. When I released my first two batches of rats, I didn't see a trace of them. I only saw a few rats on the third day, but none after that."

"That you don't have to worry about. I had full control over every one of them over the first five or six days."

"Yes, My Lord."

"What I want to know is why the rat poison was released and how they knew what to use. Can you explain that to me, my boy?"

"I cannot, My Lord. I do not know what happened. I did not know that they were going to release rat poison. I was caught in the middle of a release and I almost breathed some in."

"I see. So, are you suggesting that there is a traitor among us?" Everyone was alarmed. Who was the traitor?

"I do not know My Lord, but I dearly hope not."

Voldemort raised his wand again, preparing to cast a Legilimency this time. Narcissa nodded her head. "My Lord, please."

Gradually, he lowered his wand. "Consider this a gift, something I do not give regularly. I will give everyone the benefit of the doubt. No more mistakes will be made." He glared at Draco. "This is your last chance Malfoy. The next time I need your help, you must not fail, or even your parents cannot help you this time." He turned over to Draco's parents. "Narcissa, you remind me so much like that filthy muggle, Lily Potter. Next time, you won't be so lucky to protect your son." She nodded faintly.

Lucius brought Draco back to the Malfoy Manor instead letting him back into Hogwarts. They held a family meeting in Lucius' study room. "Draco! What happened this past week? Why have your mission failed? If your mother hadn't saved you, there will be one less person in this room right now."

Draco stood protectively near his mother. "I know Dad. I am fully aware of that."

"Then can you Please explain to me what happened."

"Like I told the Dark Lord, I don't know what happened. I was caught in the middle of the rat poisoning myself. Are you accusing me of being the traitor?"

"I am doing no such thing."

"Then stop questioning me as if I was accused of something Father! You have no right since the Dark Lord didn't even question me himself."

"Don't you dare talk to me in that tone! If it wasn't for your mother, you would've had the Legilimency curse casted onto you! And all your secrets will be spilled before you."

Draco stared straight into Lucius' eyes. "I have nothing to hide. Do you?"

"Watch it. I am your father."

Draco scoffed, thinking, "Just barely." He spoke, "I know. Nothing can change that."

Narcissa broke inbetween the two most important men in her life. "That's enough. Draco, honey, let's get you something to eat before you return back to Hogwarts."

"Mom, there's no need. I'll go back now. I don't want to stay here."

"Why? It's your home."

"My home is in your heart Mom. I have to go now." Narcissa relunctantly let her son go as he apparated back to his dormitories.

When Hermione woke up, she was still feeling a little faint. Madam Pomfrey said, "Here deary, drink some of this. It'll make you feel better." She handed Hermione something and Hermione drank it slowly.

She asked, "What am I doing here Madam Pomfrey?"

"I don't know actually. There didn't seem to be anything wrong with you, but you just wouldn't wake up no matter what I tried."

"How did I get here?"

"That, you would have to thank Mr. Malfoy. He carried you into the wing last night."

"He carried me here last night?"

"Yes, after you guys forgot to go back to your dormitories for the night and caught with some rat poison."

"Oh, right." Hermione thought back to everything that happened last night. Even though it was brief, she remembered it as if it was happening right now. Draco wrapped his cloak around her to protect her and he pushed her close to him, so that they could feel each other's heartbeats. Hers was beating very fast and she didn't know why. It was over in a minute or so, but when she stepped out in the hallway, she fainted. She was fighting to get out of the blackness, but she couldn't. She felt someone lift her off the ground and into a strong pair of rough arms, which then gently settled her down onto something. All that time, she was fighting to become conscious again, but she couldn't do it. She stayed admist in the darkness and couldn't get out of it. She was aware of what was happening around her, but she had no say in whatever was happening. Then she woke up here. Was it really Malfoy that brought her here? Why would he do that? Didn't he want her to die anyways? Wasn't it just better for him if he left here there on the hallway?

After a couple of minutes, she saw Harry, Ron, Luna, Ginny, and Neville rush into the hospital wing. Harry asked, "Hermione! Are you alright?"

She nodded. "I'm alright everyone. I just woke up so I guess I'm just a little tired, that's all."

Everyone gave a sigh of relief. Ginny asked, "What happened Hermione?"

Hermione whispered into Ginny's ears, "I'll tell you later."

Ginny raised an eyebrow. "It's about him, isn't it." Hermione hung her head in shame as she nodded.

Ron scrunched his eyebrows together. "About who? Who are you guys talking about?"

Luna said, "I'm just happy that you're okay Hermione." Hermione smiled.

Neville said, "Yeah, without you in the classes today, I think the professors are actually going to call on people, possibly me! I don't know the answer to anything, you know that Hermione."

Hermione laughed. "Thanks Neville. I'm better now. I just need to rest up a bit before joining you guys in your classes."

Harry sat on Hermione's bed and took her hand in his hands. "I hope you feel better Hermione. It's just not the same without you. I'm sure Malfoy will miss you on your duties, too."

Hermione laughed, not knowing what to say. Ron was furious. How could Harry just touch Hermione's hand like that! They're not dating! They can't do that. She saw that Ron was staring at Harry intently. "Ron, what are you doing? Is there something wrong with Harry's face?" Harry saw that Ron was staring at him and he laughed out loud.

Harry said, "It's nothing Hermione. He's just jealous that I get to hold your hand and he doesn't."

Hermione raised an eyebrow. "Right. Well get along you guys! You can't be late for your classes." Everyone gave Hermione a quick hug before going back to their classes. Ron wanted to stay with her, but he was quickly shooed away by Madam Pomfrey.

Madam Pomfrey said that if she was feeling better, she could go back to her dormitories to rest before her prefect duties tonight. She was excused from classes for the day.

When Hermione got back to her room, she took out her diary. She opened it to a fresh page and began writing about last night's events, however strange they were.

When Harry, Neville, Luna, and Ron walked into Snape's class late, he gave them all detention. However, in the middle of the class, when everyone was taking a test, Malfoy dragged Snape to the corner to talk to him.

"I need you to teach me the Occlumency. The Dark Lord was going to enter my mind last night if my mother hadn't stopped him."

"Narcissa was always a smart, brave girl." That was all he said. He neither denied or confirmed that he was going to teach Malfoy the Occlumency.


	7. Partners

Chapter Six: **Partners**

Ginny warned, "I'm serious Hermione, don't go there. I'm warning you, don't go there."

Hermione threw her hands up in the hand and then slapped them down on Ginny's bed. "Who said I was going anywhere?! Nothing is going to happen."

"I'm just making sure because this is something you can't get involved in. It's too much. There will be too many problems for you to face, even if there are two people to face it."

"I know! Who ever said that there will be two people? Who ever said that there will be problems? You make it seem like I've already fallen for him."

"Haven't you?"

"No! Of course not!"

Ginny raised an eyebrow in disbelief. She sighed. "Hermione. Stop lying to yourself. Ever since you kept it a secret that Malfoy carried you to the hospital wing, there has been something there. You didn't have to tell me in secret afterwards, you could've just said it in front of everyone else."

"You know how Harry and Ron are. They will kill Malfoy, thinking that he did something to me to cause me to lie on that bed."

"Well, let them think that. Isn't that what happened? From what you told me a couple of weeks ago, it seems like that's what happened."

"That is definitely not what happened! You only listen to what you want to and twist my words to make it seem like the biggest thing in the world. I fell unconscious because I breathed in the rat poison and Malfoy just carried me to the hospital wing."

"I still don't believe you. How could it be that simple?"

"I don't know. I didn't believe it either until Madam Pomfrey told me it was Malfoy that carried me there."

"Doesn't he hate you? Why don't he just leave you there to until someone else finds you? There is something going on between you two, I can feel it. Whether you guys are complete idiots and don't know, or you're in denial, or you're just not telling me something, I know something is going on."

"There's nothing going on Ginny. I'm not in denial, I'm not hiding anything, nor am I a complete idiot. There is nothing going on. End of story."

"The end of one story is always a beginning of another one Hermione."

"Ugh. I'm going back to my room Ginny." Ginny grinned, knowing that for once Hermione didn't have anything to say. It was true. There was something going on between Malfoy and her, and Ginny was the only one feeling it.

Professor McGonagall made a huge announcement at the daily prefect meeting. "As you are all aware, Christmas is just around the corner, a couple of weeks or so away. This year, for something special, we will be holding a Christmas Ball the day before your vacation begins." Everyone gasped. A Christmas Ball! Hogwarts is finally having another dance! McGonagall waited for everyone to settle down before speaking again. "Yes, the Christmas Ball. As with any other dance, the Head Boy and the Head Girl must go together. This year, it is also required that prefects go together too. That is, they have no option but to attend the Christmas Ball, whether they want to or not.

"Also, it is your job to tell everyone about the Christmas Ball. Make flyers, announce in classrooms, I don't care. If anyone is not attending the Ball, write down their names and we will assign them to a classroom, or classrooms, to have their own Christmas party, where they can do anything they want within the rules. Everyone understand?" Everyone nodded.

"Now is the time for everyone to pick their Christmas Ball partners. It can be anyone you want, even if you are in the same House." Ron smiled. FInally, he get to have a chance to be with Hermione.

Malfoy didn't know what overcame him, but he suddenly got out of his seat and walked over to Hermione. He opened his mouth and asked, "Granger, will you dance with me?"

Hermione's eyes flew open and her mouth dropped, as did everyone's in the room. Did Draco Malfoy, THE Draco Malfoy, just ask her to go to the Ball with him? Ron was also speechless. He was just about to gather up his courage to ask Hermione to the ball when Malfoy was just a second ahead of him. He said, "Hermione! Don't listen to him. He's just playing with you. Go with me to the Ball."

Malfoy scoffed. "Go with you? That's ridiculous. And I'm not playing around Granger, go with me to the Ball."

Pansy interrupted. "You're not really considering actually taking to the Ball are you Drakie? You can't! You're suppose to go with me! You're in love with me Drakie!"

Malfoy shook his head. "I'm not in love with you Pansy. I was _never_ in love with you Pansy, I was just playing with you." He turned to Hermione. "I'm serious, go with me. I'll show you what having a great time is all about." He stared sincerely at her.

Hermione closed her eyes slowly and let out a deep breath. What just happened? Why was Malfoy asking her to the Ball? It made sense that he would go with Pansy, since they were practically boyfriend and girlfriend. She knew that she should say yes to Ron because they were best friends, but what about Malfoy? She knows she should say yes to Ron, but she couldn't open her mouth to say it.

Malfoy held out his hand, waiting for her to accept it. "So, Granger, will you go with me to the Ball? And make me the happiest man in this room?" Malfoy was a sweet talker, and he could melt any girl's heart with his words.

Just in time, McGonagall said, "Go back to your seats. Your prefect duties are about to start. You can pick your partners again tomorrow for those who haven't made a decision yet."

Everyone filed out of the room when McGonagall finished assigning them places. Ron wanted to stay with Hermione very badly because he didn't want Malfoy to have extra time during their duties to convince her to go with him to the Ball instead of going with Ron. "Professor McGonagall! Do you think I can make rounds with Malfoy and Hermione tonight?"

McGonagall said sternly, "No, you may not Mr. Weasley. Now all of you, on with your duties."

Malfoy smiled. This was going to be fun. "I know you've made up your mind Granger, it's going to be me, isn't it?"

Hermione looked away in disgust. Was she really considering going with THIS guy to the Ball? "Don't get too full of yourself Malfoy."

"I'm not. I'm the perfect choice to take to the Ball."

"And why shouldn't I take Ron? He's my best friend."

"But he's only a best friend."

"Why do you even want to take me anyways? Why not take Pansy, since you're always with her anyways."

"Are you jealous that I'm with Pansy all the time?" Hermione gave him the look. "Okay, okay. And I don't know why I asked you. I just did and when I realized I did, I was like hey, why not?"

"Hey, why not? So you're just playing with me."

"No, I'm serious. I want to go with you. You just weren't my first choice, but I've made you my only choice now."

She shook her head in disbelief. "Do you really think that I'm going to believe all this crap that you're feeding me?"

"Maybe. But it's not crap, I know it, and you know it too."

"I hate you."

"The feeling's mutual."

"I have a problem Ginny."

"I know. When I heard that you were asked out by my brother and Malfoy, I knew you would come to me sooner or later. What did I tell you?"

Hermione flopped onto Ginny's bed and sat next to Ginny while holding onto one of the pillows. "I hate how you're right Ginny. I mean, I don't like Malfoy, I'm sure of it."

Now it was Ginny's turn to give Hermione the look. "Really now? After you've had all this time to think about it, and you're still saying that you don't like him? That's a lie, and you know it."

"It's not a lie Ginny, I'm being serious here. I dont' like Malfoy. I don't hate him anymore, but I am far from liking him."

"Then what are you confused about? If you don't like him, then why not take Ron to the Ball?"

"That's why I'm here asking you! I don't like your brother either, he's just my best friend. But the reason I'm considering Malfoy is because I don't hate him anymore. How can I choose between my best friend and someone I don't hate anymore?"

"You mean how can you choose between your best friend and someone you like?"

"No, it's not like that Ginny."

"Hermione! You have to admit it. Even though I don't approve of you and Malfoy, and never will, you have to stop denying that you like him."

"But I don't like him."

Ginny threw back her head and groaned. "You're hopeless Hermione." She sighed. "Just choose a guy to go to the Ball with. Maybe it's because he's my brother, but I think Ron will be the better choice. But knowing you, you would probably choose Malfoy to go to the Ball with."

"How do you know?"

"Because I know you better than you know yourself. You're going to the Ball with Malfoy and maybe, just maybe, you'll stop denying to yourself that you like him."

Hermione couldn't stop thinking about what Malfoy said during their rounds. She was not his first choice, but she is the only person he'll take to the Ball now. Hermione sighed. 'You just weren't my first choice, but I've made you my only choice now.' "You're right. Not about the denial, but about taking him to the Ball. I've decided to take Malfoy to the Ball."

"See? It was as simple as that." Hermione went down under Ginny's covers. Why had she just chose Malfoy over Ron? Ugh!

"So, Granger, have you chosen yet?"

Ron smirked. "Give it up Malfoy, it's going to be me. We have known and been close to each other since the first year."

"We'll see when Granger answers me." Malfoy turned back to Hermione. "So what's it going to be Granger? Me or him?"

Hermione sighed. "It's going to be you, Malfoy."

He smirked. "Didn't I tell you that you were to chose me over Weasley?"

Ron was furious. "Hermione! How can you pick _him_ over me?! You don't seriously like him, do you Hermione?"

"Ron! How can you think that about me? Why would I like Malfoy?"

"Then why are you going to the Ball with him?!"

"Give it up Weasley, she already chose me over you. Don't make a further fool of yourself." Ron grabbed Malfoy by the collar as if he was going to fight him. Malfoy quickly pushed him off. "Who do you think you are? Potter? Even the legendary boy who lived couldn't touch me. What makes you think that _you_ can?"

Hermione groaned. Why did she pick this ferret to be her date for the Ball?


	8. Help

Chapter Seven: **Help**

Hermione sent a letter to her parents saying that she was going to attend the Christmas Ball and she needed a pretty formal dress. Then she went back to the Gryffindor table where everyone was giving her stares.

Harry asked, "Hermione, are you really going to the Ball with Malfoy? I think Ron would be the better choice." Ron smiled at his friend who stood up for him.

"Yeah, I think I'm a better choice too, Hermione. Please reconsider it. I mean, c'mon, you can't really want to go with him. He was forcing you to right?"

"I don't know Ron. But I'm sorry, I made my decision. I'm going to the Ball with him." She was thinking to herself, "I'm sorry, but I just want to prove everyone wrong. I don't want to like Malfoy. By the time the Ball is over and I don't feel anything, I can prove to everyone and myself that I don't like him. I would also want to know why my heart was beating so fast that day. I don't want to stay in the dark anymore! I want to know what's up with my life. Do I really like Malfoy or not?"

Ginny stood up for Hermione. "Guys, just leave her alone. It's only the Ball, it's not like they're getting married or anything. Even though I don't like Malfoy, I will support Hermione in whatever decision she makes."

"Ginny! You're my sister! You're supposed to be helping me!"

"Well I am also Hermione's friend! I can't just leave her hanging. I have to support her. And you guys are being ridiculous. She can choose whatever she wants. It's her decision. If she doesn't like you Ron, then she doesn't like you. You can't force her to like you."

Ron blushed. "Who ever said that I liked her? Who ever said that I wanted her to like me?"

Everyone shook their heads in disbelief. It was obvious that Ron liked Hermione. Neville asked, "So if Hermione's going to the Ball with Malfoy, who's Ron going to go with?"

Everyone turned to face him. "I don't know who I'm going with. Probably with a prefect in Ravenclaw or Hufflepuff. I am certainly not taking anyone from Slytherin to the Ball."

Ginny asked, "So anyone can go to the Ball right? Even people only in their fifth year?" Hermione nodded. Ginny smiled. She was thinking maybe she'll ask Harry to the Ball.

Hermione saw Ginny smile and she smiled herself. "Yes, Ginny. You can ask _anyone_ you want to the Ball, except if they are prefects, which I'm sure your guy isn't."

Ginny punched Hermione's arm playfully. "Hermione! How can you say that?"

Ron was speechless. His sister likes someone now? "Ginny! You like someone? Who is it?" Every head turned to face Ginny, including Harry's. Ginny blushed.

"It's not like that Ron. I don't have somebody in mind yet. I don't even know if I will go. I have to get a dress and then a guy has to ask me to the Ball first. So yeah, it's going to be complicated."

Harry boldly suggested, "Maybe if I haven't found anyone to take to the Ball, I'll take your sister Ron." Ginny blushed. She has had a crush on him ever since forever and she couldn't imagine what it would be like if he took her to the Ball.

Neville said, "Well I can take you to the Ball if you like Ginny. I have no one to go with and I think you'll make a good date."

Ginny smiled. "That's really sweet Neville, but you really don't have to if you don't want to."

"It's okay. I mean, probably no one else will go with me and it'll be nice, just like the Yule Ball right?"

Harry looked intently at Ginny, hoping she will just say that she'll consider it and not say yes in front of everyone. Ever since his failed relationship with Cho Chang, he has been keeping things to himself lately. Also, he was busy preparing for another fight with Voldemort, whenever that might be.

"Um...sure Neville, why not? I think it'll be fun. Me and you at the Christmas Ball, just like it was at the Yule Ball."

Neville grinned. "Thanks Ginny."

Hermione asked, "So who are YOU taking to the Ball, Harry?" It was now Ginny's turn to look at Harry. She was hoping that he would say nobody.

"I don't know. I might not even go. I might ask Luna though. She seems like a nice girl."

"Yeah, she does. A little weird, I have to admit, but she's a great girl."

"Yeah."

Malfoy smirked. "So have you gotten a dress for our dance, yet?"

Hermione tried to ignore him, but it didn't work out. "Shut up Malfoy. Just worry about yourself. I'm going to be prepared for this dance, and you better not embarass me."

"It just might be you that'll embarass yourself."

"We'll see." Hermione was actually a little scared about going to the dance. She's been to the Yule Ball with Viktor Krum, but that was it. That was the only dance she has ever been to, and frankly, she hadn't danced that well in that dance. She was fooling around and having fun, but that was it. She was a prefect now, and no doubt, there will be formal dancing in the Christmas Ball. She didn't know how to dance and she didn't want to embarass herself. But she certainly didn't want to ask Malfoy for help.

When she got back to her dormitories, she peeked into Harry's room to see if he was back yet, he wasn't back yet. She stayed up for another half hour until he came through the door to their Common Room. Harry was startled by her. "Hermione! What are you still doing up? Don't you have class tomorrow?"

"I do, but I want to ask you something."

"Okay."

"Do you know how to dance?"

"What do you mean?"

"Like formal dancing? The way that they do it in the movies?"

"Um, I'm not sure. Maybe a little? Why?"

"I don't know how to dance and I want to learn."

"So, you want me to teach you?"

"Yeah. If that's okay, of course."

"Yeah, of course. Now?"

"Oh. Not now, since you're tired, but some time before the Ball, okay?"

"Sure, Hermione."

"Thanks! You're the best Harry." She gave Harry a hug and a kiss on the cheek before heading back to her room.

After a week or so, Hermione and Harry finally found time to practice their dancing. They were in an empty classroom and Harry had his hand around Hermione's waist and she had her hand on his shoulder. They held hands in the air and Harry slowly guided them in a dance. Hermione kept on staring at the floor so she doesn't mess up and step on Harry. She was holding onto Harry's hand very tightly, she was very nervous.

Harry laughed and sighed. "Hermione. Let loose. Let yourself relax and stop looking at the floor. I will lead you, so just follow my lead. The dance is suppose to be fun, don't think too much of it."

They tried again and this time, Hermione actually didn't look at the floor. She wasn't relaxing enough though. She was also not following Harry's lead correctly. Harry would sway her one way, and she'll go the other way. Harry suggested something else. He placed Hermione's hands around his neck and he placed his around her waist. They swayed back and forth in place and gradually, Harry began leading her in a circle around the desks. "You're getting there Hermione. This is the easy dance, in a while, we have to try the other one again." Hermione nodded as they danced some more. Hermione put her head on Harry's shoulder as he hugged her tighter.

Hermione thought, "This felt nice. Harry is so nice to me, and everyone else. He'll make a perfect boyfriend to someone. Why can't the person I like be him?" Hermione sighed mentally.

Malfoy just happened to pass by the classroom when he saw that someone was in there. Being the snotty prefect that he is, he was going to rush in and dock their points. When he peered in and saw that it was Hermione and Harry, he was furious. What was that Granger doing hugging Potter like that?! He decided against barging in and just looked in from the outside.

"Are you ready to practice the first dance again Hermione?" Hermione bit her lip and slowly nodded. She placed her hand on his shoulder while he placed his on her waist. They danced very slowly. Harry moved one way and Hermione was a second behind him as she had to slowly move in order to copy his moves. After a while, she finally got the hang of it and they danced faster and faster. However, they were only half way finished when it was time for dinner in the Great Hall.

Malfoy hid in the shadows when Hermione and Harry came out. "Thanks Harry for teaching me how to dance. Now I can actually show that ferret and stuff it in his face that I can dance." Malfoy gave a sigh of relief when he heard that they were only practicing dancing. He laughed to himself. Why would Granger like that Potter anyways? It's ridiculous, they were only friends.

Malfoy smirked. "So Ron's not enough for you? You have to snag Harry too?"

"What are you talking about Malfoy?"

"You know. Dancing and hugging in a classroom. I just happened to walk by."

Hermione showed disgust on her face. "We are friends Malfoy. Friends help each other out. I needed help on the dancing thing, so he helped me and I'll always be there for Harry whenever he needs my help. There are different kinds of love. I love Harry, though not romantically, because he is the brother that I never had. I guess a person like you would never understand that."

"What do you mean a person like me? Just because I don't give myself away to my friends, it doesn't mean I don't have any."

"Psh. Yeah right. Some friends you have." Hermione was angry now. What gave Malfoy the right to ask about HER life, when she has nothing to do with him?

"I thought you already knew how to dance, Granger." Hermione looked away, obviously embarassed that she couldn't. "If you needed some practice, why didn't you ask me, your partner?"

"I don't want any help from you."

Malfoy grabbed Hermione's hand and put it on his shoulder while simultaneously putting his hand on her waist. He cupped her other hand and raised it to ear level. Hermione began to pull away, but Malfoy held on tighter. "I don't want my partner to embarass me on the day of the Ball."

"I hate you."

"I know you do."


	9. Christmas Ball Part I

Chapter Eight: **Christmas Ball Part I**

Malfoy held tightly onto Hermione's waist as they danced in the spacious hallway. He swayed her from side to side, and she followed as best as she could. Sometimes she would step on his shoes, but he didn't care. He let it go, and it seems like Hermione didn't want to apologize either. Both of them went on like nothing has ever happened. Malfoy began dancing faster when Hermione got used to his style of dancing. Malfoy let go of Hermione's waist and held his other hand higher and began spinning her around. Malfoy began walking in a circle around Hermione as she spun slowly around. She was starting to get dizzy, but she didn't want to tell Malfoy that. Malfoy lowered his hand and took a step back so their arms were stretched out. He pulled Hermione back towards him, but being very dizzy, she tripped. Malfoy caught ahold of her back, and it looked like they were doing the dip. He pulled her back up, and their eyes met.

They were staring at each other with longing eyes. They began moving closer to each other until their lips were less than an inch apart from each other. Malfoy began inching closer towards her as Hermione began inching away. She shouldn't be doing this. This was the enemy she was just about to kiss. Suddenly, a voice interrupted their moment. "Draco Malfoy!" Draco looked beyond Hermione and saw that Lucius was in their hallway. Lucius speedwalked toward his son and saw that it was Hermione Granger that his son was holding in his arms. They quickly broke away from each other. "What are you doing?"

Draco said, "That's what I should be asking you Father. It's past visiting hours, if you haven't noticed."

"I'm here for you, my son. The Ministry gives me special access to this school as special times. Now, come with me. I have something to say to you."

"I'm on duty tonight, as I am every night."

"Come, now. This is an order Draco." Draco sighed. He had to follow his father's orders no matter what. Lucius gave a disgusted look to Hermione before they walked away.

Hermione whispered to herself, "Hermione Granger, what did you just do? Did you really just consider kissing that _thing_? What is wrong with you? Just because he knows how to dance perfectly and he was teaching you and you suddenly tripped, it doesn't mean he can take advantage of you. It doesn't mean you can give in to him. You have to step out of it Hermione! This is way out of your league. This is a Slytherin you were about to kiss, not a Gryffindor, or a Ravenclaw, or even a Hufflepuff." Hermione went into a deep depression during the rest of her rounds. Not only was Malfoy not there, but how was she ever going to face him again? This was really too much. Maybe she really shouldn't have chose him as her partner. She sighed again.

Lucius screamed, "What were you doing with that filthy Mudblood?!" Draco remained quiet, not saying a word. "Answer me now!"

Draco scowled. "I wasn't doing anything with her."

"You were holding her in your arms and trying to kiss her!"

"Why does it matter what I do?"

"You are serving the Dark Lord, you must not do anything shameful. You canNOT be with a Mudblood."

"If you've forgotten, the Dark Lord is only half-blooded."

"Never say that in front of his face."

"I am not with Granger."

"You've changed. You don't even call her Mudblood anymore."

"She's my partner for the Christmas Ball."

"I forbid you from taking her to the Ball, you must take Pansy."

"I don't like Pansy."

"You cannot like that Mudblood."

"I don't like Granger."

"You are taking Pansy to the Ball."

"I'm doing no such thing."

"You must! This is an order."

"Well, that's an order I will not follow."

"Draco! This is no laughing matter. If the Dark Lord finds out about this, your life will be miserable."

"You mean YOUR life will be miserable. I am only 16. The Dark Lord will have to forgive me, as opposed to you, Father, where you have been serving him for more than a decade."

"Don't talk to me like you're an equal. I am your Father."

"I am fully aware of that."

"Whatever I say goes."

"You wish that was the case, but it isn't."

"Don't ever talk back to me again."

"It's already become a habit, Father."

The Christmas Ball was getting closer and closer, it was only three days away. Hermione was worried that her parents hadn't gotten her note yet, but that morning, when the owls came in, a package was dropped in front of Hermione, along with a card attached to it. "Hi, Honey. It's good to hear from you again. I'm afraid you can't come home this Christmas. Your father and I are going skiing in the Alps this vacation for a second honeymoon and we will be gone for a month. As I am writing you this, we are packing for our honeymoon. I hope you have fun at school, though. We have included a brand new dress for you along with brand new shoes. It's your size, I'm sure of it, unless you have slimmed down since I last saw you."

Hermione sighed, of course her parents would go on a second honeymoon, they are so lovely towards each other. She read on. "I hope you have a nice time at your Christmas Ball though. Whoever the lucky boy is, he will be the luckiest man in the room because you'll be the most beautiful girl in the room. Gotta go, honey. We'll see you again when your summer vacation starts. Have fun! Love, Mommy and Daddy."

Ginny asked, "Hermione, what does the note say? Who's the package from?"

"It's from my parents. It's my Christmas Ball dress and shoes. The note said that I can't go back for Christmas vacation. They are going on a second honeymoon for a month and they won't have time to take care of me."

"Aw, I'm sorry Hermione. You can join us for Christmas if you want."

Hermione smiled. "It's okay Ginny, I'll just stay in school. I'm sure I can keep myself busy with schoolwork."

Ginny laughed. "Of course you can keep busy."

When classes were over, Hermione brought the package to Ginny's room so she can try it on in front of her. Ginny had already bought her dress the last time she went to Hogsmeade with Neville. She liked it a lot. Hermione's parents have bought her a deep red dress that was tight on the top and flowy on the bottom. There was a simple black sash seperating the top and the bottom. The top was sleeveless and it was a lowcut where it showed off her top figure very much. The bottom was in layers with black see-through silk underneath each red layer. It was very beautiful. It ended right before her knees, showing off her skinny and long legs. The high heels were black with a red rose in the middle. It was open toed and the sides were made up of strings that held the foot to the bottom of the shoe. It laced up to her ankle and Hermione loved it very much. She smiled as she twirled around in the mirror.

"Oh my God Hermione, this is beautiful. I wish I thought about asking my parents to get me a dress. Knowing my mother though, she probably wouldn't have picked out anything good."

Hermione laughed. "Yeah, it really is beautiful. I never knew my mother would pick out anything this beautiful." She smiled as she gazed as herself in the mirror. She's looking forward to this Ball, even more than the Yule Ball with Viktor.

The Christmas Ball was conveniently on a weekend so that it gave the girls time to get ready without worrying about having classes that day. Ginny, Luna, and Hermione got ready together in Hermione's dormitory. Luna was going to the Ball with Harry. Hermione thought that they made a cute couple, but of course, nothing can wane her support of Ginny's feelings for Harry. Everyone was very beautiful that evening and they had everything in place perfectly. The took hours to get their hair the way they want it to be and to perfect their makeup. It was a tiring process preparing for the Ball, but it's all worth it in the end.

All the guys who were going to the Ball had already arrived in the Great Hall on time. However, the girls were late. But of course they would be late, they are girls after all. They had to arrive in style. All the guys were sitting in their respective spots waiting for their dates to arrive. Ginny, Luna, and Hermione were one of the later girls to arrive at the Ball. Ron was going to the Ball with Padma Patil, as he did at the Yule Ball.

Harry and Neville were already waiting at the bottom of the stairs for Luna and Ginny respectively. However, everyone gasped when Hermione entered the Great Hall on the top of the stairs. She was beautiful and it took everyone's breath away. Malfoy hurried to the stairs to watch Hermione descend the stairs towards him. He was astonished as well. Hermione was very beautiful, easily the most beautiful girl in the room. When Hermione was on the second to last step of the staircase, Malfoy held out his hand and she accepted it. He pulled her in and whispered in her ear, "You look beautiful, Granger."

She took a step away from him, while still holding his hand. She looked him once over, taking in the appearance of her date. Somehow, his beach blonde tousseled hair looked even better than it usually does. He looked good in his two piece dark black suit. He was wearing a white dress shirt with a deep dark red tie that complimented Hermione's dress. He had one button buttoned on his suit in the middle. The right side of his dress shirt was untucked and it looked just right on him. "You don't look so bad yourself Malfoy. If you weren't so hateful, I'll be really glad that you were my partner tonight."

"Why don't we just enjoy our time here tonight and forget about everything else? We can start hating each other again tomorrow. But sometimes, even people need a break in reality."

She nodded and repeated, "Even people need a break in reality."

He led Hermione towards the prefect table where the Head Boy and Head Girl was already seated along with Ron and his partner. He was stunned by Hermione's beauty. "Hermione, you look really beautiful tonight."

She smiled. "Thanks, Ron. Look at Ginny, she looks really beautiful too." Ron gave a quick glimpse at his sister and nodded. Malfoy took a seat next to Hermione as she took one next to Ron.

The slow music began to play, and Malfoy asked, "May I have this dance?"


	10. Christmas Ball Part II

Chapter Nine: **Christmas Ball Part II**

Hermione hesitated at first. She wasn't sure she was ready for another confrontation with Malfoy. Whenever they got close to each other, the tension was always there and it seemed like they were the only ones in the world. Hermione wanted to tell herself that she hated Malfoy with all her heart, but can she really do that? She doesn't know what she feels anymore. She slowly accepted his hand and he led her out onto the dancefloor. He put his hand on her waist and she put her hand on his shoulder. He raised their hands to ear level and they began to dance.

It was beautiful to see them dance. They flowed as one person and they moved simultaneously. It was as if they were part of a picture that was moving over and over again. They were flawless. The chemistry was there and there seems to be a definite glow around the couple. Everyone was jealous of them. How could two opposite people be so perfect for each other? Ginny nodded her head and sighed. She knew that this would happen. They were meant to be together, but yet, they could not be together. They will always deny that they love each other and they will also be making the biggest mistake of their lives.

Harry and Ron were shock. They could not believe that Hermione and Malfoy would dance so well together. It was magically. Ron was really jealous. Why couldn't he have his chance with Hermione like Malfoy did? He was better than Malfoy in every way, so why did Hermione choose Malfoy instead of him? Harry smiled, happy for his friend, but disapproved of who she was choosing. She chose the enemy, there will be hell to pay for that.

Luna said, "Harry, they look really good together don't they? They look happy."

He nodded. "They do look happy. I wonder how long it's going to last."

She shrugged. "Maybe they'll surprise us."

"I hope not."

Malfoy began spinning Hermione around, and this time, she didn't get dizzy. They did the dip perfectly and then they began dancing again for a couple of moments before they stopped. When they stopped, everyone was clapping for them. Everyone was entranced by their dancing. It was spectacular. They went back to their table when the food was being served.

Malfoy helped Hermione got her food. "Malfoy, I didn't know you could be such a gentleman."

He smiled. "There is still much more you haven't discovered yet. I have many more surprises for you."

"I'm sure you do." They were laughing and joking around a lot during dinner. Ron was getting more and more jealous. Just like the Yule Ball, he was ignoring Padma. She was getting restless.

"Ron! Stop ignoring me. This is not fun. I am never going to another dance with you again." She whispered in his ear, "Stop pining over her Ron, she's never going to like you. You're only going to be a friend to her, and that's all you'll ever be."

"Padma, just shut up okay? I don't even know why I came here with you."

"You mean _I_ don't even know why I came here with you. This is the second time you've spent moping around. Ugh, I'm just so sick and tired of you Ron."

Malfoy nudged Hermione on the elbow. "I think Weasley there is jealous that we're actually getting along."

"That's ridiculous Malfoy, Ron and I are only best friends. We can never be anything more."

"That's not what he hopes for."

"But that's all I'm asking for."

"So who are YOU asking for?"

She hit him playfully on the arm. "It's not going to be you Malfoy."

"Even after our almost kiss?"

She blushed. "Even after our almost kiss."

Harry got up and walked towards the prefects' table. He asked Hermione for a dance and she gladly accepted. Malfoy even let her willingly go, knowing that there was nothing between her and Harry. Harry said, "So, I see that you're having a good time with Malfoy."

She nodded. "He's actually a really nice guy when he wants to be. We decided that we would drop our hate for today. Tomorrow, I might not be as lucky."

"As long as this isn't permanent. You know that Ron is not very happy about it."

"I know, but what can I do? I'm here with Malfoy, my partner, I can't be paying attention to Ron all the time." She looked over to Luna and smiled. "So, what's happening with Luna? It's nice of you to take her here."

"Yeah. We danced a couple of times, she's a nice girl. She can't dance that well, but she's a fast learner."

"Oh. That must be nice. Having someone learn faster than I did." They both laughed, but was interrupted by Neville.

Neville asked, "Hermione, do you think I can dance with you too?"

"Sure, why not?"

Neville and Harry exchanged partners and Harry was now dancing with Ginny. "Ginny, you look very good today."

She smiled. "Thanks, you don't look so bad yourself."

"Thanks." After a long pause, "You're a really good dancer, you know that?"

"Um, thanks?"

"It's true. I was trying to teach Hermione, but I guess she never got the hang of it with me."

"She seems fine when she danced with Malfoy. She was better than fine in my opinion."

"I know. She must've practiced with Malfoy."

"Yeah, I guess so."

There was a long awkward pause before Harry spoke again. "Ginny, you know that I was planning to ask you to the Ball instead of Luna? I mean, Luna's great and everything, but I don't feel that way about her."

"What way?"

"You know, a romantic way."

Ginny gave a sigh of relief in her mind. "Oh. Well, you guys are good friends, that's all that matters I guess." She desperately wanted to ask who he liked romantically, but decided that this was enough talking for the night. They danced in silence as Harry held Ginny dearly in his arms.

Malfoy interrupted Neville's dance with Hermione and in return, Neville began dancing with Luna. "You want to ditch the dance with me?"

Hermione said, "Malfoy! We are prefects, we can't do that! We have to be here at the end of the dance or Professor McGonagall will suspect something!"

"Then we'll be back by then. I just want to leave for a while. It's getting boring."

Hermione began biting her lip, thinking whether she should do this or not. She finally nodded and gave into Malfoy. "Okay, let's go."

They quietly slipped out of the Great Hall and went into the edge of the Forbidden Forest, near the waters. "C'mon Granger, let's go down in the water."

"It's cold Malfoy. This is the beginning of winter. You do realize that right?"

"Oh c'mon, let loose Granger! So what if it's winter? The water might not even be cold, it's Hogwarts for god's sake. Even if it's cold, I'm sure you can cast a spell to make yourself warm."

It's true, she _can_ cast a spell to make herself warm. She sighed, but slowly began removing her dress away as Malfoy got out of his suit. They were in their undergarments when they went into the water. Malfoy entered first and let out his hand for Hermione to hold onto. They slipped into the water quietly. The water was warm, and they were relieved. "Um, Malfoy? What are we doing here anyways? We're suppose to go back before midnight before the ceremony ends. I don't even know what I'm doing here with you."

"Have some fun Granger, stop worrying about everything. Life is about having fun. It's good for a person to let loose once in a while."

Hermione smiled. She was going to have fun in the next hour or so with Malfoy. There will be no worries in the world. "Well, I do have to worry about one thing."

"And what is that?"

"My hair. No amount of magic will fix my hair back to the way it is now."

Malfoy shook his head and sighed. "Fine, I guess you don't have to go underwater. But that doesn't mean I won't try to get you to go!" He went down under the water and began attacking Hermione's legs. She screamed and began squirming in the water. She tried to push Malfoy up, but she was unsuccessful. She was splashing water everywhere, and some of it got onto her head. She finally gave up after five minutes. Malfoy resurfaced and pushed water towards her face. She screamed as her whole face and part of her hair got wet. "Gotcha!" He grinned.

She splashed water in his way, drenching his already wet body. She began swimming away from him, but he swam after her. He finally caught up to her and grabbed onto her wrist. He grabbed her waist with his other hand and turned her around to face him. They stood like that for a few moments in the moment. Malfoy began edging Hermione towards him and she began inching closer and closer to his face. This time, there was no one to interrupt them, and their lips met in perfect harmony. If this was a scene in a movie, fireworks and bells would be going off at this exact moment.

Malfoy began going deeper into the kiss, but Hermione pulled away. "Malfoy, we can't be doing this. It's not right. _We're_ not right."

"What do you mean we're not right?"

"I don't know. I just know that this shouldn't be happen. We should go back to the Ball now. It's almost midnight."

Malfoy nodded as they dried themselves and put their outer garments back on. Hermione gave up trying to fix her hair, and just made sure it was dried. When they got back to the Ball, everyone was still dancing and some were sitting down enjoying a late night snack. Professor Dumbledore got onto the stand and said, "Would everyone have a seat for a moment?" Every sat down in their appropriate spots. "The Ball is coming to an end, and it's time for the final dance. The Head Boy and Head Girl and the prefects will start off the dance with their respective partners." The prefects got onto the dance floor and stood in position with their partners. Dumbledore led McGonagall onto the dance floor for a dance.

Hermione stared into Malfoy's eyes the whole time they danced. What was going to happen tomorrow? They kissed, but will this nice-ness ever last? They agreed to put it aside for one night. Will it last for the days after that? She sighed. What was she going to do? She didn't expect this to happen. The whole reason that she came here was to prove to herself that she didn't have feelings for him. She sighed again.


	11. What Could've Been

Chapter Ten: **What Could've Been**

Christmas vacation was only a couple of days away. Everyone was getting busy packing to go home for the two or three weeks of vacation. Ginny asked, "Hermione, are you sure you don't want to spend this Christmas with us? Harry is coming home with us too."

She shook her head. "I'm sure Ginny, I'll just stay here at Hogwarts. You and Harry and the rest of your family go have a great time together."

"Okay, we will. But I'm sure Ron and my parents would appreciate it if you came though. I don't think anyone wants you to be alone this Christmas."

"It's okay Ginny, really. Tell your parents and all your brothers that I said hi. I would've prepared presents for them, but I didn't have time. Tell them I'm sorry."

"It's okay. But don't be alarmed if Mum sends you something through the owls. She is very um, highly-spirited? I'm not sure that's the word for it."

Hermione laughed. "I'll look forward to it. I'll leave you alone while you pack. I'm going to visit Hagrid with Harry and Ron for a while. I'm sure he's staying here for the Christmas vacation." Hermione grabbed Harry and Ron from the common room and they walked towards the outskirts of the Forbidden Forest, where Hagrid's hut was. While she was walking through the hall, she saw Malfoy. She was about to say hi, but decided if he didn't say hi, she wouldn't either. Malfoy walked past her without a second glance, all the while talking with Pansy. Hermione's spirits fell, but she sighed. What could she have expected? They were from opposite worlds. The kiss they shared last night was just the spur of the moment. There was nothing between them, and there never will be.

Malfoy gave a sigh of relief when he knew that Hermione was a safe distance away from him. He couldn't do this. His parents, the Deatheaters, everyone would be disappointed with him. He didn't know what overcame him last night. He's always had very good self control over himself. Maybe it was the truce that they formed that they wouldn't hate each other last night. She was just so beautiful. How could anyone resist? Malfoy began distracting himself by talking to Pansy.

"So Drakie, where are you going this Christmas?"

"Huh?"

"I _said_ where are you going this Christmas?"

"Oh. I'm staying here, my parents are busy."

"Don't you have a big mansion where you can stay with the servants though?"

"Yeah, but I don't like staying there alone."

"Where are your parents going anyways?"

"They are going on some trip to Switzerland."

"Why aren't they taking you there?"

"Don't know, don't care." As long as Lucius was there, Malfoy will never be happy no matter where he was. But whenever it was just him and his mom, he was very happy.

"Do you want to come home with me this Christmas?"

"No. I don't want to talk about it anymore."

"Okay, Drakie." Pansy wrapped her arm around his as they walked down the corridor.

Hagrid opened the door for them and quickly ushered them in. "Harry! Ron! Hermione! I haven't seen you guys in a while. C'mon, quickly, it's getting cold." They settled on Hagrid's chairs and he sat opposite them. "So what brings you guys here today?"

Harry and Ron turned to Hermione. "Well, um, I don't know. We haven't seen you in a while Hagrid, how are you doing?"

"Blimey, I'm doing so much better. I'm going away this Christmas!"

"You are?"

"Yep. Just like you guys, I get to go home this Christmas."

"Home?"

"Yeah. Well not really my home, but where I would have belonged."

"You're going up North again?"

"Yeah! I'm bringing Grawp with me too. I think he misses it there. We're going back for the vacation and then coming back here again when Hogwarts reopens for classes."

Harry touched Hagrid's hands. "That's great Hagrid. I'm sure Grawp will appreciate everything you did for him. You're a great brother."

"Thanks Harry. If you had a younger brother, I'm sure you would be a great brother too. Hey, maybe you can adopt Ron as your younger brother."

Everyone laughed, but Ron. "What is that suppose to mean?"

Hermione touched Ron's shoulder. "Oh Ron. Don't be so sensitive. You just need special care sometimes, that's all." Ron pouted.

Malfoy stated, "So this is our last round of duties for the year. I guess I won't be seeing you for the next three weeks." He smirked.

Hermione was not amused. "I'm staying here for vacation, so I guess, you're right, I won't be seeing you for the next three weeks, and I'm glad." She couldn't get the kiss out of her mind. Why was it so hard? The kiss meant nothing. It was a spur of the moment thing. They were just caught up in the moment and they ended up kissing. Clearly, that was proven earlier that day when Malfoy completely ignored Hermione.

"What? Why are you staying here for vacation? Shouldn't you be back home with your filthy muggle parents?"

She punched Malfoy's arm with all her strength. He winced in pain. "Don't you _ever_ talk about my parents like that. So what if my parents are muggles? At least they aren't lowly servants to Voldemort, who will never, _ever_ defeat Dumbledore's Army."

He scoffed. "Don't be so sure. You don't know what the Dark Lord is capable of."

"Whatever it is, I'm sure Dumbledore will have a plan to counter it."

"Let's save this conversation for the vacation. If you must know, I'm staying here for the vacation too." He smirked again. He knew he was getting to her. He's not sure why he just has to tease her every single time he sees her, but it's the only way he can deal with the feelings. He doesn't want to admit that he has feelings for her, and he hopes that they will just disappear. He is serving the Dark Lord, the Dark Lord must never find out about their kiss.

"No! You cannot be staying here for the vacation too."

"But I am."

"I hate you Malfoy. I was going to have a peaceful Christmas, I guess not."

"Where have I heard this before?"

Hermione tried to ignore Malfoy for the rest of the night, but it was a hard task. She couldn't help giving him secret glances once in a while. He just looked so serene while he wasn't talking. She could stare at him forever if she wasn't afraid that she would get caught up looking at him.

Hermione gave a hug to all her friends as they boarded the train to go home. Everyone invited her to their house, but she declined every one of them. She was going to stay at Hogwarts this Christmas, and she was perfectly fine with that. The only boat back to Hogwarts that had space was the one that Malfoy was sitting in. She sighed and relunctantly climbed in. Halfway towards Hogwarts, Malfoy's arm began searing in pain as if something was burning him. He lifted up his sleeve and saw that the Dark Mark was moving, that the Dark Lord was calling out to him.

He pushed his arm into the freezing water to calm the burning sensation, but it didn't work. Instead, he tipped the boat over, and the boat almost tipped over. Luckily, Hermione grabbed Malfoy's arm out to steady the boat. When her fingers touched the Dark Mark, it burned her skin. She was a muggle-born afterall. She turned Malfoy's hand to look at it again and this time, she saw the Dark Mark. She gasped as she looked deeply into Malfoy's eyes. She bit her lip, as if to stop herself from crying. She let go of Malfoy's arm.

Hermione thought to herself, "Hermione, why are you so surprised? It's not a surprise that Malfoy is a Deatheater. You've known it since you knew about Lucius and the Malfoy family." However, the confirmation of it was too hard for her to deal with. "You have to get over him, Hermione. He is not someone you should waste your time on. You live in two different worlds. He is a Deatheater, you are in Dumbledore's Army. You two will never work out. Get that into your head!" She was frustrated at herself for letting her feelings get the best of her. They were not meant to be. The kiss was nothing. It was nothing!

Malfoy thought to himself, "Should I explain to her? Wait, what's there to explain? The Dark Mark is self-explainatory itself. She knows I'm a Deatheater now, as if she didn't know that before. Should I explain though?" Should he deny and lie to her that he's not really a Deatheater? But what's the Dark Mark doing on him then? "No, I have bigger things to do. I cannot screw up, especially not this time."

Hermione slipped into her lonely dormitory. She was one of the few people that was staying at Hogwarts for Christmas, she was the only one in her room. She began crying. Why was it so hard to take in? "He's a Deatheater, Hermione. You knew that already, but yet you still fell for him." She began crying harder. Thank god there was no one to hear here. "You knew that nothing good would ever come out of him, but yet you did everything you didn't want to do. Now you're crying over a thing that wasn't even worth half your time last year. Why?! All over a stupid kiss?" Even as she said that out loud, she knew it wasn't true. The kiss wasn't even half of it. The feelings have been building up since the beginning of the school year. Ever since the unfateful staircase incident, a flame has been sparked, and it keeps on getting bigger and bigger.

What if they were just normal human beings? Not a wizard or a witch. Not a pureblood or a muggle-born. Normal human beings that can fall in love with no complications. What if they didn't meet in here, but in the outside world? Hermione cried harder on what could've been. On what could've happened to them if they were not who they are now.


	12. I Just Want to Know

Chapter Eleven: **I Just Want To Know**

Hermione slept in until eleven on the first day of vacation. She felt very refreshed when she woke up. She hasn't slept this late in so long. Even on the weekends, she was forced to wake up very early because there were too many people in the common room making noises. However, it was silent when she woke up today. The students weren't required to show up at any of the meal times except for dinner, so they could sleep in as late as possible. Hermione got ready and walked into the Great Hall for something to eat when it was lunch time. The four long tables were gone and there was only one medium length table in the middle.

There were already seven people there when Hermione arrived. They were busily eating their food so they could have more time to themselves. However, Hermione was planning to enjoy her food since she didn't eat breakfast that morning when she was sleeping. Unfortunately, she was sitting next to Malfoy. She didn't want to look at him. She didn't want to remind herself that she had feelings for him and she especially didn't want to remind herself of the Dark Mark on his arm.

Malfoy tried to ignore Hermione too, but he wasn't very good at it. He kept on looking at her, but she never looked back. She was determined to exclude him from her life as much as possible. She finished her food in about half an hour and began taking a walk around Hogwarts. There wasn't much to do in Hogwarts during vacation when no one was around to do it with you. There was a scheduled Hogsmeade trip in the upcoming weekend, but it might be cancelled due to the extremely small amount of people that wanted to go.

She unconsciously walked towards Hogwarts' lake. She tried to get the kiss out of her head, but she couldn't. It was too vivid in her imagination. It just happened a few days ago, and god knows that she's not ready to let her feelings go yet. They're still too strong and she's still hurting too much. She reached further back into her memories and thought back to when Viktor rescued her during the Triwizard Tournament. It was sweet to know that she was very precious to him.

She sat down on a nearby rock and waded her feet in the water. She was getting cold, but she was a witch, there's always some way to counter that. Malfoy saw her by the lake and decided to walk over. Hermione sighed. Why does he always show up no matter where she was? She didn't want to see him anymore. She was tired of having these feelings for him and knowing that it'll never work out. She wanted to get over him as soon as possible. She began putting her shoes back on when she saw Malfoy sitting down next to her. She didn't want to be near him at all during this whole vacation.

Malfoy was very hurt when Hermione started walking away from him as soon as he sat down. He wanted to reminisce their memories together of what happened a few nights ago. He sighed. Why was he getting all worked up anyways? It's not like they were together or anything. She can do anything she wants and he had no right to question her. She wasn't his girlfriend and she never admitted that she liked him. Why was it so hard to actually have feelings for a girl? Why can't it go away? They were unwanted anyways because no good result would come out of them being together.

Malfoy started walking back towards the Hogwarts castle when he saw that Hermione was far enough. He didn't want her to think he was following her or anything. Sure, he came when he saw that Hermione was at the lake, but that's an entire different story. He went back to his room and rested his head on the pillow. His eyelids drooped heavily over his eyes and he fell asleep.

He woke up for dinner and he walked lazily towards the Great Hall. He took his seat beside Hermione and began eating. He tried to ignore the fact that she was perfectly fine without thinking about him or talking to him. He was going crazy sitting near her and not hearing her voice and that he couldn't do anything about it. He wished he hadn't ignored her that day in the hallway when she was with Harry and Ron. Maybe if he didn't, she wouldn't be ignoring him now and they would be happily talking to each other.

Hermione sighed. Why was this so hard to do? It was just sitting next to him. It wasn't like they were back at the lake where there was only the two of them. She quickly ate her dinner and went back to the Gryffindor common room. This was going to be a very, very long vacation. Why didn't she accept the offer that Ginny gave? She could be happily celebrating Christmas at the Weasley's house instead of stuck in Hogwarts sulking over Malfoy.

---

Malfoy has decided that he has to stop thinking about Hermione so much. This is getting nowhere. He was a Deatheater, he cannot pine over a Mudblood like this. He had to step it up. He cannot let a girl control his life like this. This is not what Malfoys do. When he saw that Hermione was coming towards his way, he purposely turned to the girl beside him and started blatantly flirting with her. The girl was very happy. She was flirting back and he pretended to be actually into her. She was surprised that the hottest guy in Slytherin was flirting with _her_. Hermione passed by without giving them another look and Malfoy quickly stopped flirting when he knew that Hermione could not hear him anymore. The girl was dejected and she pushed Malfoy to the side.

Hermione tried to not think anything about it. He was just being Malfoy. He always flirts with other girls, such as Pansy. But why does this one hurt so much? Does finally admitting that she has feelings for him make everything so much harder? She flopped onto her bed and she hugged all the pillows she could find. She began crying herself to sleep. It's been like this every night. She would cry herself to sleep because there was no other way to make herself sleep while she she was constantly thinking about him.

Staying at Hogwarts for vacation was a very bad idea. She hadn't stopped thinking about him for even one second. All her thoughts always somehow manage to go back to him no matter what she thinks about. She doesn't have experience with these things like her other friends do. She's never liked anyone before, except for maybe Viktor, but that didn't last long. She didn't know what she should do in a situation like this. Should she try to get over Malfoy as soon as possible? She knew that that wasn't an option though. She was in too deep. Should she keep on ignoring him like she's been doing for the past week? It's been going pretty well, but she doesn't know how long will it last. She will have to talk to him eventually when classes start again.

---

Hermione climbed into the prefects' bathroom tub. She's never been in it before, this was her first time. She was glad that she decided to pack a bikini in her suitcase. It was going to great use now. She played with the white bubbles and not soon after, she began getting sleepy. The tub was just so comfortable, unlike other things in her life.

When Malfoy went into the prefects' bathroom, like every night during this vacation, he saw that someone was already there. He saw that it was Hermione and he almost went out the door without bathing. However, he told himself that he can't just back out every single time that she's there. He has to face her some time. Just because he has feelings for her, it doesn't mean that he has to avoid her. He's trying to get over them and the best way to do that is to confront it.

Hermione heard a quiet splash next to her and her eyes flew open. It was Malfoy. "Malfoy!" She slipped lower into the water so he couldn't see below her head. "What are you doing here?"

"So you actually decide to talk to me after a week of ignoring me."

"Shut up Malfoy. At least I'm not the one flirting with every girl I see."

He smirked. "Who says I was flirting? Can't I just be doing it to make you jealous?"

"You know what? I don't even care anymore. What are you doing here?"

"I'm a prefect too. I have every right to be here."

She turned her head away. He was right. He did have every right to be here, not that she wanted him to be here. "Whatever. I don't want to talk to you anymore." She continued to take her nap in the water. She couldn't help but think about how every time they talk, it has to be a fight. Why can't they be normal like they used to be? Before the stupid kiss in the lake. Why did everything turn so weird? As Hermione was thinking all of this, she unconsciously shed a tear and it slipped down her face slowly.

Malfoy continued staring at Hermione after she fell asleep. He saw the tear slip down her face and his face began to soften. Why did he just pick a fight with her? Why does it matter if she hadn't talked to him for a week? As long as she was talking to him again, he was okay with that. He banged his head onto the side of the tub for being so stupid. He didn't want to see her like this. He didn't like seeing her crying at all. It was too much for him. He mouthed the words, "Hermione, I'm sorry. I really am."

Malfoy's heart was beating faster than ever. Being so close to her and not being able to do anything about it was making him crazy. If only she would talk to him normally again. He sighed.

Hermione was having a horrible dream. She was getting chased by the basilisk again, but this time she hadn't looked into his face yet. He was closing in on her with his mouth open. When he was just behind her, he opend his mouth wider and closed down on her whole body. Hermione woke up with a scream. She was shaking all over. When she saw that Malfoy was still next to her, she wrapped her arms around her knees and began shaking even harder. Malfoy tried to get closer to comfort her, but she quickly moved away, splashing water on both of them.

She quickly got out of the water, leaving Malfoy alone in the tub. Malfoy didn't know what overcame him. Maybe it was the way that she woke up, or maybe he was finally fed up with avoiding his feelings, but he got out of the tub too. When Hermione was getting her towel to wrap around herself, he wrapped his arms around her waist from behind. No matter how much she struggled, he wouldn't let go. He put his cheek on her warm body.

"Malfoy! What are you doing? Let me go now!"

"No. I won't. I've already decided. I'm not going to avoid my feelings anymore. I know I like you, and I know you like me too."

"I don't like you Malfoy. Let me go! I don't want to stay here with you."

"Gran...Hermione, stop lying to yourself. You know that you like me."

She finally got out of Malfoy's hands. She turned around to face him. "So what if I like you?! Is that suppose to mean anything? We aren't going anywhere. You're a Deatheater and I'm just another witch to you."

"You're not! I love you Hermione, I really do! I can't live without you. I have been going crazy these couple of weeks trying to figure everything out. I've tried confronting you, I've tried ignoring you, I've even tried making you jealous, but I'm still going crazy. Please?"

"Malfoy, what do you want from me? Do you think we are going to be a lovey dovey couple that can show off to everybody? What would everyone think? I can't be with you."

"You don't have to be with me. Just say that you like me. I just need a confirmation. I don't want to be avoiding any longer. I just want to know. Please."

Hermione closed her eyes slowly and then opened them again. "I love you Malfoy, I really do." She began bursting out in tears and Malfoy held onto her for dear life.

---

[Author's Note]: I saw Harry Potter and the Half Blood Prince today (7/16/09) and I have to say, it's good, but it wasn't all that good. It has some missing scenes, but that's to be expected because it's a long book with only a limited amount of time. All in all, I have to say it's a good movie, but of course I wanted Draco and Hermione together, which will never happen. D: Sighs.


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